


Treason by Mistletoe

by octopus_fool



Category: The Hobbit - All Media Types
Genre: Fluff, Humor, Light Angst, M/M, Mistletoe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-10
Updated: 2017-12-10
Packaged: 2019-02-13 01:43:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,355
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12972972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/octopus_fool/pseuds/octopus_fool
Summary: Thorin should have seen through their plans. And yet, here he was, standing under what could only be mistletoe. With Bilbo.





	Treason by Mistletoe

Thorin should have known. He should have known when he saw Fíli and Kíli whispering together. He should have know from the way Bofur and Dwalin exchanged knowing glances. He should have known when Óin, Ori and Nori suddenly started taking walks through the nearest forest. And he definitely should have known when Bifur told him, with his most innocent face, that there was something he needed to see, right this moment. 

And while Thorin had vaguely planned to keep an eye out for whatever nonsense Fíli and Kíli might be coming up with, he wasn’t expecting the entire company to be involved, especially not honest Bifur. And so he followed him into the trap, wondering what could be so urgent.

He knew the moment he collided with Bilbo, who was walking through the door equally brisk in the other direction. 

“Are you alright?” Thorin asked, helping Bilbo off the ground. First things first, and he couldn’t have Bilbo hurt after all that he had been through already. 

“I’m fine,” Bilbo replied, brushing off his clothes. “Balin told me you wanted to talk to me urgently. Is there a problem?”

Bilbo’s face was rather flushed, probably just from being rushed halfway through the mountain, not from the close proximity Thorin was rather too aware of.

“No, not a problem. I just wanted your advice on something. It’s not far from here.”

Thorin grasped Bilbo’s elbow to steer him back in the direction Bilbo had been coming from. Maybe, if he acted quick enough, he could avoid what he knew would be hanging above them in the doorway. Maybe.…

“Ahem.”

It was Glóin’s voice, not Bifur’s or Balin’s. 

Maybe if they just started walking….

“Look above you.” Kíli sounded smug beyond belief. 

Thorin really did not need to look to know what doom hung above them. 

Bilbo paused, wanting to look.

“Just walk,” Thorin hissed at him.

There were titters, more than just the voices of the four dwarves that Thorin knew were there. Thorin pointedly did not look towards them.

“You can’t just walk away from this,” Dwalin said.

Beside him, Bilbo looked up. 

“Oh.” It was a small sound, one of hopeless defeat. Thorin’s heart ached to hear such a sound from Bilbo. He could no longer bear to look at Bilbo.

Thorin looked around to glare at the conspirators. Not just the entire company was gathered, grinning broadly. Dís, Dáin and Stonehelm had joined them too, and on the pillars sat Roäc with a rather large group of ravens, all watching expectantly. It was all that they hadn’t invited Bard, the Elvenking and half their kingdoms to watch today’s spectacle too.

Bilbo cleared his throat. “Erm, I’m not quite sure on the dwarven traditions surrounding mistletoe…”

“It’s quite simple really,” Nori said with a grin that Thorin wanted to wipe off his face with a bucket of cold water. “If two people step under the mistletoe at the same time, they are not allowed to leave until they have kissed. Pretty much the same as it is in the Shire, I gather.”

“Technically, we did not step under the mistletoe at the same time,” Thorin tried, still desperately avoiding to look at Bilbo. “It was more that Bilbo stumbled and I didn’t want him to…”

“Technically, you _did_ step under the mistletoe at the same time,” Glóin supplied. “We all saw it.”

“Bilbo only stumbled when you collided,” Ori added.

“Just get on with it and kiss,” Fíli said, rolling his eyes.

“We all know you want to, have wanted to for ages,” Kíli said. Thorin briefly wondered if he shouldn’t have fed him to wargs somewhere on the road. But then the wargs might have taken on Kíli’s endless energy, and that probably wouldn’t have been a good thing either. 

Thorin finally looked at Bilbo again. He had turned as red as those prize-winning tomatoes he had described to Thorin. He had never looked more wonderful. Thorin had never wanted to kiss him less.

Bilbo looked at Thorin and shrugged. “We might as well. It’s not like we have much choice.”

There were encouraging cheers from the audience and Thorin could already imagine the catcalls when the inevitable happened. Maybe he should ban this vile weed from the mountain, or introduce horrendous taxes on the import of it.

“Really, we don’t have all day,” Daín called when they still hesitated.

“Are you sure?” Thorin asked Bilbo quietly.

Thorin had thought it wasn’t possible for Bilbo to turn any redder, but it was. Thorin was sure he didn’t look much different himself. Bilbo nodded and closed his eyes.

Thorin gazed at him for half a moment, then decided it was rather inappropriate to do so.

He took a deep breath, leaned down, closed his own eyes and softly planted a small kiss on Bilbo’s lips. 

Bilbo gave a soft sigh, more a breath really, when their lips parted again after that briefest of moments. Bilbo’s eyes met his, clear and bright, before Thorin tore his eyes away, still as conscious as ever of their audience.

“That wasn’t a kiss! That was barely even a peck!” Kíli called.

“Again! A real kiss this time!” Dori demanded. 

Thorin stepped away from Bilbo.

“Enough!” He bellowed. “None of you have any right to demand this of us, to keep us here like this. You should be ashamed! Now leave, all of you! The show is over. And take that accursed piece of vegetable with you!”

They had the decency to look guilty and shuffled away, Kíli and Ori quickly untying the mistletoe from the door. The ravens took off in a dark cloud, uncharacteristically silent. 

To Thorin’s relief, Bilbo had not run off immediately, though Thorin wouldn’t have blamed him if he never wanted to see him again. Thorin should have refused to go along with their demands much sooner, should have put them in their place right away. 

Without a word, Thorin and Bilbo agreed to set off in the opposite direction of the others.

“I’m sorry,” Thorin said after a while. “I should have seen it coming and prevented it. I should have realised what they were up to.”

“Don’t worry, it’s not your fault,” Bilbo replied. “And I don’t think they meant to upset us. They just meant well and got carried away.”

“It is my fault. That was inappropriate. I shouldn’t have taken advantage of the situation like that.”

Thorin thought of the feeling of his lips on Bilbo’s, of the sight of blushing Bilbo with his eyes closed, of that tiny sigh. They were all memories that he knew wouldn’t go away, memories that he shouldn’t even have. 

Bilbo stopped walking and stared at Thorin. “Taken advantage? How was that taking advantage?”

“I… I have thought of kissing you before. And… I shouldn’t have done so. Not when it meant more than just a jest between friends to me. I’m sorry.”

Bilbo stared at Thorin with even wider eyes. He took a step towards him. 

Thorin swallowed, not sure whether to expect a slap or something he didn’t even dare hope for. 

Bilbo took another step towards Thorin. He cupped Thorin’s face in his hands and gently tilted it downwards. Very slowly, Bilbo closed the gap between them.

Bilbo’s lips were softer than Thorin had had the chance to appreciate during that previous brief kiss. Bilbo’s fingertips wandered into Thorin’s hair, tugging at it gently. When Bilbo opened his mouth and gently ran his tongue across Thorin’s lips, a low moan escaped Thorin. He could feel Bilbo grin against his mouth at the sound. 

With another soft sigh, Bilbo eventually ended the kiss. He pulled back just far enough for them to be able to look at each other properly. 

“Are you still sorry?” Bilbo whispered.

Thorin was torn between wanting to take in the sight of Bilbo’s reddened lips and wanting Bilbo to kiss him again. Talking was currently not much of a priority.

“Hm. Will you kiss me again if I am?”

Bilbo grinned and leaned in again. Thorin was quite certain that he was not at all sorry.

**Author's Note:**

> I’m currently taking Christmas/Yuletide/winter requests/prompts over on Dreamwidth! If you’re interested, read more here: <https://octopus-fool.dreamwidth.org/2017/12/03/>


End file.
